ABSTRACT
Full Language Immersion Programs (FLIPs), in which students study all or part of their course content in a nonnative language, have become increasingly popular in the United States and Canada over the past 20 years as a form of elementary and secondary education. These programs are predicated on the assumption that second language acquisition (SLA) occurs most easily and rapidly in the targetlanguage environment and culture. Immersion programs thus attempt to duplicate this environment, surrounding the learners with the target language and exposing them to the target-language culture as much as possible. The immersion environment is thought to provide ample incentive and opportunity for learners to acquire both receptive (reading and listening) and productive (speaking and writing) target-language skills (Lapkin, Swain, & Shapson, 1990).
